DJ Gear Smokin' Deals
DJ Gear Blog Posts
We get a lot of questions from customers looking to buy gear for the musician in their lives so we’re going to be recommending gift ideas for every kind of instrumentalist, DJ, or producer you’re shopping for this holiday season. I’ll be posting a different category every day this week so be sure to check back on the daily! We’ll start off with the population close to my heart…
FOR YOUR DJ
By far the coolest midi controller to hit the market in the last year is Novation’s Turntable savvy pair of controllers that fit into the 45″ adaptor holder of your technics or similarly laid out turntable. They attach just as easily to your laptop, CDJ, or controller with the provided mounting gum that reminds me of the stuff I used to hang posters on my wall in middle school. They map automatically to Serato Scratch letting you trigger cue points, loop rolls, and effects and there are also available maps for Traktor. This is definitely an item DJ’s are curious about if they don’t already own a pair.
If you want both drum pads and knobs in a compact layout the Akai LPD8 gives the DJ just that with responsive pads for cue points and knobs for your effects. USB power makes it plug and play and it’s sure to play nicely with your Serato or Traktor setup. It even doubles as a handy production tool you can use with Ableton, Reason, or Logic when making beats away from the decks.
By far the sleekest and most well thought out bags to hit the scene in a while, Mono is quickly becoming well regarded as the go to case for taking your important gear on the road. Their DJ line provides a bag solution for every gigging situation weather it be carrying a laptop and controller or vinyl along with compartments for headphones, hard drives, and interfaces. Check out your DJ’s current bag and if it doesn’t quite fit everything or looks like it hasn’t been replaced since the 90’s, might be time to re-up with one of these. See the photo set we did with all the bags on our Flickr and video rundown we did where I sized up each bag and what it fits.
Many Serato Scratch DJ’s value function over fashion, but if they had the opportunity to splurge on their setup a little it might be with a pair picture disc control records. These limited edition Serato pressings feature artwork from classic NYC street artist Eric Orr. Great for a DJ looking to add some flare to their setup or to put on the wall as a piece of Serato history. Numbers are limited and these records are running out fast. Theycome one per order NOT AS A PAIR.
If vinyl is still your game, then used record shopping is essential. Bring one of these to the record or thrift store with you to preview cuts before you buy. No more taking chances on records you’re not quite sure about. Save money and time with this Vestax portable player, or take it with you to the beach, picnic, or barbeque to listen to records anyway.
If records aren’t your game, and you don’t have a dedicated laptop DJing yet then your iPod may be your best enty to the digital DJ world. Numark’s iDJ2 gives you access to all the music on your iPod to load up your tracks on two decks to mix them live. You can cue up, loop, scratch, and change the pitch of your songs all from on board controls on the iDJ2. Great for anyone just starting to DJ with limited resources.
If you have a laptop you want to use for DJing but don’t have a dedicated controller for it yet, the Mixtrak Pro is a great place to start. Mapable to either Virtual DJ or Traktor this controller has surprisingly responsive jog wheels and faders given it’s entry level price point. The on board sound card makes this a complete solution for cueing tracks from you software in headphones and sending your main mix out to some speakers or a sound system.
This controller has lived up to the hype and is currently one of the most sought after controllers for DJ’s both in the club and in the mobile setting. If you’re looking to spend a little more on that special DJ this holiday season definitely check this out as an option.
Check out more from The ProAudioStar 2010 Holiday Gift Guide:
For Your Vocalist
Tags: 2010holidaygiftguide
